Why are gasoline hose on pumps so short now? Remember the good old days when you could park on either side of the pump to fill your car? Now you see a line of cars waiting on one side, while the other side of the pumps is empty. Stupid! Was this a safety issue, or are they just saving money on hoses?

 

Drive around the island and come in from the other direction??
doesn't seem so difficult ...

But I think short hoses may have to do with Vapour recovery systems and such...

 

I've noticed that some pumps appear to have short hoses but there is part of the actual pump that will extend out. It works like a keychain you might see on a janitor. They have these at the Costco I go to, and it makes the wait much shorter. You typically have to hold the hose over the car to avoid it touching the paint (or maybe denting the roof on the GK).

 

It's often impossible because of tight quarters and cars in the way. Halfway through the maneuver, someone will drive straight in a take the spot you were aiming for. I can sometimes do it with the Fit, as I did this morning, but it's not a simple solution. I've seen drivers drive by stations where they had to wait.

http://www.kwwl.com/story/25992788/2...-way-too-short

 

I remember when gas fillers were centered in the rear, you'd open the license plate to fill the tank!

Of course, the explosions weren't good.

We have a station here that has signs that say "nozzles reach either side" but that only applies with subcompacts, and only then if you sidle right up next to the pump.

 

The exhaust is usually on the left and the filler on the right. They can't fit both on the same side of the car. The center-fill was a compromise. Cars in the 1950's often had the filler hidden inside a taillight, or something similar.

 

I used to pump gas back in the early 60s. A challenge to find some of them. 56 Chevy was neat how the taillight would swing out.

 

The 50's Cadillacs had a similar system.

 

And early VWs filled under the hood, with a filler wide enough that you could fill the tank from a bucket if you needed to. Oh, and when the tank was full it was full, none of this nozzle shutting off with a gallon of space left in the tank! :)